Building construction



Aug. 11, 1953 Filed Oct. 11. 1948 E. W. SMITH BUILDING CONSTRUCTION 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 IN V EN TOR. far/ HZ J/wv/A' Aug. 11, 1953 E. w. SMITH BUILDING CONSTRUCTION 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Oct. 11. 1948 INVENTOR. far/ -W 5/77/76 nwmx Eatentecl Aug. 11, 195?;

BUILDING CONSTRUCTION Earl W. Smith, Berkeley, Calif.

Application October 11, 1948 Serial No. 53,959

4 Claims.

My invention relates primarily to buildings of a relatively inexpensive nature and especially those designed for use as dwellings. It is particularly adaptable for use in the building, often in large quantities, of homes necessarily economical in their arrangement, planning and fabrication but designed so that individual differences can be given considerable scope. lhe problem in providing housing or other building construction of a relatively inexpensive yet satisfactory nature is made up of many factors, some of which are the employment of expensive labor in building, the necessity of utilizing staging and auxiliary construction aids when the building is of considerable height, the necessity of cutting and fitting various timber members in the course of construction or at the building site, the provision of false work, such as a ceiling between the interior of the building and the roof, the provision of adequate protection from the elements, especially drainage of rain water, and the provision,

on most soils, of a foundation sufficient to bear the weight or load of the building.

It is an object of my invention in general to provide a substantially standard dwelling so far as accommodations and appearances are concerned, yet one in which many of the mentioned drawbacks and some others are overcome or mitigated.

Another object of my invention is in general to provide an improved building construction for all purposes.

An additional object of my invention is to provide a form or type of building construction which is readily recognized by artisans and mechanics normally employed in building, yet which is sufficiently simplified and improved to result in a substantial saving in money.

Other objects together with the foregoing are attained in the form of building construction illustrated in the accompanying drawings in which:

Figure l is a perspective of a dwelling constructed in accordance with my invention, and

Figure 2 is a cross-section through a typical part of a building constructed in accordance with my invention, parts of the figure being broken away to reduce its size.

In its preferred form, the building construction of my invention includes a foundation incorporating a floor slab laid upon the ground to have substantially the marginal outline of the building. The edge or margin of the foundation slab is substantially at a selected uniform elevation throughout but the central portion of the foundation or' floor is laid at a slightly higher elevation; that is, at a predetermined height or distance above the margin. Supports, such as posts or walls, are erected upon the foundation floor-and the supports are all of a uniform overall vertical length orheight. Resting upon the sup-' ports is a roof panel which constitutes the ceiling of the building and likewise forms the weatherproof top closure for the construction.

Since the roof panel is supported on uniformly long supports, it is at a uniform distance from the floor throughout so that the marginal part of the roof panel is at a predetermined elevation, while the central part thereof is at higher predetermined elevation corresponding to the extra height of the central part of the floor slab.

. The general principles of the building construction of my invention can be incorporated in numerous different structural forms depending upon architectural style, the preference of the owner, and various other factors. They have, however, been successfully incorporated as illustrated herein in a low cost dwelling for a small family. This dwelling presents substantially the customary external and internal appearance of a dwelling of contemporary architecture and is characterized by a floor or foundation 6 which is laid substantially upon the ground and supports exterior walls, such as l and 8, preferably finishecl in a pleasing fashion of substantially standard materials and is closed at the top by a roof 9 of the flat variety, which, however, in accordance with the present invention is actually not planar but is somewhat higher in the central portion ll than around the marginal portions [2 and I3, for example. The roof slopes downwardly and outwardly from the center in four planes as indicated by the line H.

In constructing my building, I preferably prepare the site M by some preliminary excavation to afford footings l6 and I1. As illustrated in Figure 2, the footings l6 constitute the outside margin of the building and are normally disposed in accordance with the plan of the structure, either to'include a porch or exterior projection III, as illustrated in Figure 1, or to follow exactly the contour of the enclosed part of the building. In either case, the footing I6 is disposed With its lower face l9 at a predetermined elevation 2| so that the remaining parts of it are appropriately located with respect to that datum plane. The central footing I1 is not disposed exactly on the datum plane H! but preferably is raised above it a predetermined distance 22 so that the upper portion of the central footing l1 is correspondingly higher than the same relative part of the exterior footing [6. Depending upon the general configuration of the building, the raised central footing I1 is disposed as nearly as possible alon the longitudinal center of the structure, in most instances stopping short of the marginal footings at the ends of the central footing and corresponding in location and length somewhat to the central line H shown in Figure 1.

After the footings l6 and I1 have been laid upon the site 14, there is provided a back fill 23 of loose material which is compacted so that its upper surface is exactly even with the upper surface of the somewhat higher central footing l1 and is also even with a ledge 24 forming part of the marginal footing l6. When the back fill 23 has been appropriately compacted so that it is disposed at an elevation substantially as shown in Figure 2, a waterproof diaphragm 25 having upturned edges 26 is placed over the entire interior area circumscribed by the footings l6 and overlyin the central footing l1. Above the diaphragm reenforcing materials 28 are provided and a uniformly thick layer of concrete 29 is poured. This furnishes the floor of the dwelling and is insulated or isolated from any possible moisture from below by the diaphragm 25 and other appropriate waterproofing as desired. As the concrete floor is laid in accordance with the elevation of the footings I6 and I1, its central area is higher than its marginal portions by a predetermined amount 3| equal to the amount 22. That is, the floor slopes generally in a uniform fashion downwardly from the central part of the building plan toward the edges thereof. The cement floor slab 29 is surface finished to afford a proper floor, itself providing the floor of the dwelling. While it can be covered with carpeting or linoleum, no carpentry work is done upon it. 7

In order to provide for framing of the building in substantially the customary form, the outside footing IB is provided, when it is poured, with imbedded bolts 32 securing suitable sills 33 in position. Since the dimension of the dwelling is such that, without trestles or staging, normally such bolts cannot be provided in the center of the floor 29 when it is poured, I provide a different expedient. It is possible to nail into the concrete 29 when the concrete is a day or two old and is sufficiently solidified to support the weight of the workmen. I therefore dispose above the central footing H a floor sill 34 suitably held in place by nails or spikes 36 driven directly into the concrete floor 29 a day or so after it is poured.

The fastenings 36 are disposed at angles to each other so that they interlock with the hardening fioor material and can be dislodged only with the greatest of difficulty after the concrete is a few weeks old.

Upon the sills 33 and 34, at appropriate intervals, I provide a plurality of uprights 38 in the central portion of the building and 39 around the margins thereof. All of these uprights, or studs are the customary kind and are all of the same length H. They are not cut at the site to compensate for the increase elevation of the central part of the building but are rather erected so that a mill cut or size of uniform dimension is utilized wherever they are erected over the supporting floor slab. Interposed in the walls at intervals are weight-bearing posts 40. While these may be of the same height as the studs, they ordinarily support heavy roof beams and so are made correspondingly shorter so that the overall height is the same. The same is true of any external supports 4| or 42, the vertical height of which is always exactly the same.

The studs 38 and 39 and .posts 40 are provided with a composition interior finish in the nature of precast wall slabs 43 and are exteriorly finished by siding 44 of the usual kind. The window and door openings 45 are framed in the usual way. In this fashion, the appearance of the building is substantially of the normally accepted kind.

On top of the various supports or uprights 38 and 39 I provide top plates 46, preferably doubled, around the margin of the building and immediately above the central footing [1. Since the uprights are all of uniform height, the central top plates are higher than the marginal top plates by the predetermined difference equal to the amount 22 or 3|.

At appropriate intervals, for example of the order of six feet in the example disclosed, I provide ceiling or roof beams 5| which rest upon the posts 40 and span the space between the outside walls and the central walls. In the pres ent instance, the ceiling and the roof panel are one and the same, there being no attic or intervening space between a false ceiling and the roof support. The beams 5! are parallel to the subjacent floor slab and are necessarily inclined to the horizontal with their central ends higher than their marginal ends. Upon the ceiling beams so disposed I fasten tongue and groove sheathing 52 to afford the main roof panel and cover it with a roofing material 53, such as felt,

' tar and gravel. A trim plate 54 extends around the margin of the dwelling for architectural finish.

Because the central part of the building is slightly higher than the margin, the roof panel 52 has a slope from the central part II toward the edges. This is a so called flat roof which, however, is given a slight inclination in all directions from the center-just enough to make sure that water will run off readily and so that any inadvertent low spots will still drain and not permit water to collect. The amount of the roof slope is immediately dependent upon the amount that the central footing I1 is above the datum plane 2| of the building and is made any selected or predetermined value.

In practice, in a small house as illustrated, a central elevation about one inch higher than the marginal elevation is adequate for drainage purposes and yet is not noticed as unusual by the occupants in the interior of the house. That is. the corresponding slope of the floor 29 is not adversely noticeable in ordinary use. It does permit, however, the provision of an appropriately drained roof, the use of uniformly long supports for the roof, the elimination of manual fitting and cutting at the site and considerable saving in cost. Since the roof and the floor have substantially the same prismatic contour, the provision of fittings, such as molding and wall finish inside the house, is uniform throughout and a good deal of otherwise necessary skilled work is avoided.

In general, therefore, I have provided a buildin construction not necessarily limited to dwellings but especially adapted to such use which provides 'a dwelling enclosure of pleasing aspect, of substantially standard or customary materials, of the usually accepted appearance yet one which is economical, devoid of the mass-produced look, and which can readily be varied, while following the general principle for expressing individual characteristics in individual units.

I claim:

1. A building construction comprisinga rectangular shaped room having a concrete floor, having an outer marginal portion around said floor at a predetermined elevation, having a linear central portion of said floor at a higher elevation to establish an outward and downward slope from said central portion in all directions to said marginal portion, having a plurality of wall studs supported by said linear central portion and said outer marginal portion, said wall studs being all of the same vertical dimension, and having a roof panel supported by said wall studs and disposed at the same slope as said floor from the central portion thereof outwardly and downwardly toward the edge thereof.

2. A building construction comprising a first foundation portion around the periphery of the building at substantially a fixed level, a linear second foundation portion adjacent the center of the building at a predetermined higher level, walls of uniform vertical dimension upstanding from said first and second foundation portions, a floor sloping from said second foundation portion to said first foundation portion, a roof supported on said walls and being disposed throughout at substantially a uniform vertical distance from said foundation portions and said floor.

3. A building construction comprising a polygonal floor slab having a marginal portion of substantially a uniform elevation and having a central portion higher by a predetermined amount and extending in substantially a straight line for a portion of the distance between two opposite sides of said polygonal floor slab, supports of uniform height resting upon various portions of said floor slab including said marginal and said central portions thereof, and a roof panel resting upon said supports, said roof panel having a marginal portion at substantially a uniform elevation and having a central portion higher by said predetermined amount and extending substantially coextensive and parallel with said central portion of said floor slab.

4. A building construction comprising a room having a concrete floor with an outer margin at a predetermined elevation, having a central area at a different elevation, to establish a predetermined slope between said outer margin and said central area, having a plurality of vertical members of the same vertical dimension supported by said central area and said outer margin of said floor and forming the wall-frames of said room, and having a roof panel supported by said vertical members and being disposed at said predetermined slope.

EARL W. SMITH.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 1,101,783 Bush June 30, 1914 2,332,227 Jackson Oct. 19, 1943 2,355,947 Bondy et al Aug. 15, 1944 2,356,768 Ladon Aug. 29, 1944 2,479,819 De Ragon Aug. 23, 1949 

